Thinking Ahead.

CAIO or NO CAIO: Customer Experience Depends Upon Structuring People to Manage Information

I first heard about “ it” in a Harvard Business article in 2016 and subsequently have been asked about “it ” by clients and colleagues alike. “ It” is yet another entrant into the C-suite. “It“ (actually a she or he) is a Chief AI Officer (CAIO).…

{Infographic} Customer Value - Expanding across the 12 Standard Forms of Value

Customer Value: Expanding Across the 12 Standard Forms of Value

Great leaders often ask me to help them create “customer value”, while others ask me to help them create “profit.” For me, the only way to generate sustainable profit is by developing a core competency for customer value creation. Chasing profits is…

{Infographic} Customer Experience and Value Add

Customer Experience and Value Add: Make it Personal, Emotional, and Sensory

Being raised in an emotionally expressive Italian family, it’s no wonder that I’ve been attracted to the emotional side of business and the importance of “emotional value” in customer experience creation. Over the years, I’ve gravitated toward…

Infographic: Customer Experience Creation: Give 'em a Reason to Hire & Keep You

Infographic: Customer Experience Creation: Give 'em a Reason to Hire & Keep You

Customer Experience Creation: Give ’em a Reason to Hire and Keep You

Would you eat at a restaurant where no human employees are present? Ten years ago I couldn’t have imagined I would ask such a question. Now, I am saying “yes” to that inquiry! In case you missed it there is such a restaurant it is called Eatsa .…

{Infographic} Customer Experience Speaker, Consultant, Author, or ... A Robot

Customer Experience Speaker, Consultant, Author OR…A Robot

At first, I didn’t have the heart to place my various occupational titles in the search field. I was afraid I’d find I’d already been replaced. However, a wave of courage washed over me and I went boldly into the unknown. Whew…as an author I might…

{Infographic} Service Delivered: Timeless Change

Service Delivered: Timeless Change!

Now, when it comes to customer service, home delivery (in keeping with the lyrics of a Peter Allen song) represents something “old,” which has been repurposed through digital technology, “to be new again.”

Lessons from a Young Leader

I’ve been a life-long student of leadership! Fortunately, I have worked with CEOs from some of the world’s most amazing companies - Mercedes-Benz, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Zappos, and Starbucks just to name a few. One of the things I’ve…

{Infographic} Looking beyond the obvious: spotting customer experience subtleties

Looking Beyond the OBVIOUS: Spotting Customer Experience SUBTLETIES

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to identify the obvious trend away from brick and mortar in favor of online purchasing . Store closings, layoffs, and predictions of doom haunt many traditional retailers such as the Sears Holding Corporation…

{Infographic} Once Upon a Time People Assisted One Another...

Once Upon a Time People Assisted One Another…

It seems like every week I read something like: Or… Technology investments and futuristic predictions of a world where virtually all service is done by undetectable robots are both intriguing and daunting. But how did we get here? And will we reach…

{Infographic} Transforming Optimism on Transformation

Transforming Optimism on Transformation

The word transformation is all the rage in business today. I suspect that’s a byproduct of another trendy word disruption . Given the speed of change ignited by start-up businesses and technology companies, many established and larger companies find…

{Infographic} Choosing Where to Invest in Customer Experience Innovation